The Backyardigans
The Backyardigans is a CGI-animated musical TV series created by Janice Burgess. It is a co-production of animation studio Nelvana and Nickelodeon Animation Studios. The series debuted on October 11, 2004 and ended on May 31, 2010. The show airs on Treehouse TV in Canada. In 2015, the first season was included as part of Nick Jr.'s Noggin app, a mobile application featuring episodes of older Nick Jr. programs. The series was based upon a live-action pilot produced in 1998 titled Me and My Friends. Reruns of this show continued to air on the Nick Jr. channel. Plot The series follows a ritualistic pattern and centers around an assortment and musical pop group of neighboring playmates depicted as bipedal, anthropomorphic animals: Uniqua, Pablo, Tyrone, Austin, and Tasha. Designed to encourage imaginative play, the characters communicate with the viewers by constantly breaking the fourth-wall, albeit the series rests particular focus on the role-playing games in which the friends participate varying with each episode, and said games are visualized through dream sequences lasting for a majority of the episode and serving as the primary focus of that certain episode. Usually, the group will visualize a unique scenario, ranging from prehistoric times to adventurous fantasies, and they are often presented with multiple dilemmas along the way to accomplishing a certain goal or priority, or may be challenged with a major single obstacle to defeat or problem to solve. After season one, there is usually a villain in the episode, mainly played by one of the Backyardigans (thus another Backyardigan plays the role of the hero), but the villain of the episode always reforms in the end. The program also follows a musical format, featuring multiple musical numbers sung throughout the course of an episode regarding whatever imaginary predicament in which the characters have situated themselves or perhaps a challenge that they have met, every episode opening and concluding with a particular song. The adventures get more advanced after the first season. When the Backyardigans have achieved their mission or defeated any disadvantages, the fantasy sequence fades, restoring actuality to the setting of the episodes as the closing song is sung, the characters scurrying to their houses for a snack. The main character or characters then opens the snack host's house door, fence, or around the corner, and shouts the main catchphrase for the final time and then closes the door. The picture then is lifeless with some background bird noises often heard as iris closes, ending the episode. In one episode, "The Secret of Snow", the episode does not start off in the backyard, but on a floor that has a red storybook on it. Also, Austin, though never shown, is the only Backyardigan who makes a physical appearance in the episode; the other four appear only in the storybook. This is the only time only one of the real Backyardigans appears. Characters Each of the five characters on the show have two voice actors: one for speaking, and the other for singing. The dancing on the show is first performed by live-action dancers, and their movements are later transported to animation. Choreographer, Beth Bogush, describes the process: "What we do is we film the live footage in the studio, send that off and they do a Leica, and then they send it to the animators. The animators watch, and were pretty precise. What we film for that day is pretty close to what you see in the character." In season one, the Backyardigans usually wear their normal clothes while on an adventure, usually accompanied with accessories. They rarely wear their normal clothes in an adventure after the first season. Main *'Uniqua' is the central protagonist of the show. She does not belong to a known species; her name, Uniqua, refers to the fact that she is a unique creature. Uniqua enjoys telling jokes and spending time with her four friends. Uniqua is shown to be somewhat of a tomboy in several episodes. *'Pablo' is the series' deuteragonist, a frenetic blue penguin. He often jumps to conclusions and has been known to overreact whenever things seem to be going wrong. His outfit consists of a blue bowtie and a beanie propeller hat. *'Tyrone' is the tritagonist of the series, a laid-back easygoing moose. He is the tallest of the five central characters due to his antlers. Tyrone and his best friend Pablo make a "great team" because of their differences: Pablo often does things without thinking while Tyrone uses his head whenever a problem arises. *'Tasha' is a somewhat bossy yellow hippopotamus who often tags along when Uniqua, Pablo, and Tyrone are heading off on an imaginary adventure. She is shown to be slightly disagreeable at points, yet never continues a verbal fight for long. *'Austin' is a timid purple kangaroo who has trouble whenever it comes to taking the lead. He is shown to be sensitive in several episodes in which he appears. Recurring *Sherman – A small, orange-spotted yellow worm. Sherman is easily scared due to his small size. He plays a role who appears 3 times in "The Heart Of The Jungle", "Polka Palace Party". and "Attack of the 50 Foot Worman". His voice is provided by Oliver Wyman. *Wormans – A fictional species of colorful, worm-like creatures who speak in squeaks and gibberish. They appear in all the seasons of the show. *Dragon – A friendly, green-colored dragon who appears 3 times (the movie "Tale of the Mighty Knights" and the episode "The Tale of the Not-So-Nice Dragon"). He hatched from a spotted egg and lives in Dragon Mountain. His voice is provided by Oliver Wyman. *Aliens – Green-colored aliens appear 4 times: "Mission To Mars", "News Flash", "Los Galacticos", and "The Big Dipper Diner". *Giant clam – A clam who appears 2 times in "The Legend Of The Volcano Sisters" and "The Great Dolphin Race." It pants and acts like a dog. *Voices – Voices included in the episodes "Secret Mission" and "It's Great To Be A Ghost!" that do not come from any shown character. *Robot Roscoe – A robot owned by Austin who appears 3 times in season 4 (the movie "Robot Rampage" and the episode "Elephant on the Run"). His voice, as well as the other robots boys, is provided by Evan Mathew Weinstein. Episodes International versions *In America, Pan-Asia, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, South Africa, Japan (the first season only), Belgium, Poland (the first two seasons only), Scandinavia (excluding Norway): Nick Jr. *The Hispanic Latin American regions, and Brazil: Discovery Kids *Albania: Bang Bang *Colombia: Señal Colombia *Israel: HOP! *Indonesia: GlobalTV *Spain: Boomerang, later on Cartoonito Spain *Portugal: Canal Panda and RTP *Japan: Disney Junior *Poland: TVP, later TVP ABC *South Korea: EBS *Serbia: Ultra Mini *Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka Rupavahini *New Zealand: TE REO *Lithuania: TV24 *Norway: TV2 *Québec region of Canada: Télé-Québec *Saudi Arabia: Baraem TV *Czech Republic, Slovakia, Russia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan: direct-to-DVD *Scandinavia (excluding Finland), the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Australia, and New Zealand: Netflix *India: Cartoon Network, Pogo A complete list of channels and titles can be found on The Backyardigans Wiki. Category:Nelvana Category:Shows from the 2000's Category:Shows that premiered in 2004 Category:Shows Category:The Backyardigans Category:CGI shows Category:Nickelodeon Category:Cartoons Category:Animated Category:Preschool Shows Category:Cancelled shows Category:Articles in need of images Category:Shows with wikis